EXTRACT FOR
Tales of Masochism
(Crimson Rose)

Entering the CEO's office, Courtney closed the door behind her. "You wanted to see me, Sir?"

"Please have a seat," Scott replied.

"Yes Sir," Courtney said as she nervously walked towards her boss' huge mahogany desk where she sat down in one of the leather chairs opposite him. 

"How are you doing, Ms. Cummings?"

"Um, I'm fine sir."

"Everything good at home?"

Feeling as if her privacy was suddenly being invaded, Courtney went on the defensive. No offense, Sir, but my personal life is no one's business."

"My apologies. Do you think we pay a fair wage?"

Heart skipping a beat, "Courtney gulped. "Yes Sir."

"In fact, we pay our employees nearly double the national average and offer all manner of incentives and benefits. So, to say I was shocked to discover tens of thousands of dollars of petty cash gone missing is something of an understatement." Seeing his employee's shoulders slump, he knew he had the stunning, raven-haired beaty right where he wanted her. "Do you know anything about it, Ms. Cummings?"

"No sir," Courtney replied, knowing nothing of the internal security systems the owner of the company had installed over the last extended holiday. 

"I'm a very generous and forgiving man, Ms. Cummings, but I have zero tolerance for liars."

"I'm not lying!" Courtney said, jerking up from the chair as if she had just been stabbed in the ass.

"You're one of five people with keys to petty cash, Ms. Cummings."

"Then go blame one of them because?"

"I have it on camera," Scott stated bluntly.

"W-What?"

"I have you on camera stealing more than eighty-seven thousand dollars from petty cash in the last three months, Ms. Cummings, so sit down and hear my offer or I'll call the police, have you arrested, and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law."

Plopping back into the chair, Courtney buried her face in her hands and then started crying. "I? I'm sorry? I? I just?"

"I don't want to hear any excuses," Scott snapped back in response to what were obviously crocodile tears. "If you needed money you could've asked and I'd have happily given you a loan. But you didn't do that did you? No, you took it upon yourself to use your authority to steal from me instead. But like I said, I'm a very forgiving man so here's my offer. You can either be fired in disgrace and arrested, or you can work your theft off at one of my other businesses at the rate of twenty-five thousand dollars a year. With interest and other fees, we'll go ahead and make it an even hundred grand."

"W-What other business?"

"You're facing termination, a lengthy prison sentence, and a substantial fine for grand larceny so does it really matter?"